Gazette notice: Commissioner of Taxation – Notice of the Services Australia specified benefits and entitlements data-matching program, 17 June 2024
The Australian Taxation Office (ATO) will acquire Medicare Exemption Statement (MES) data from Services Australia for 2024 financial year through to 2026 financial year inclusively.
The data items include:
- Full name, date of birth, residential address
- Entitlement status, and approved entitlement period details.
We estimate that records relating to approximately 180,000 individuals will be obtained each financial year.
The objectives of this program are to:
- ensure individuals are correctly claiming exemption from payment of the Medicare levy and Medicare levy surcharge
- work with taxpayers and intermediaries to better understand the identified risks and trends for non-compliance
- develop education strategies so compliance is better understood and easier in the future
- speed up processing of tax returns and payment of refunds to taxpayers who are genuinely entitled to claim these exemptions
- undertake verification activities where the information obtained indicates a taxpayer may not be entitled to claim the exemption, either partly or in its entirety
- help ensure that individuals and businesses are fulfilling their tax and super registration, lodgment, reporting and payment obligations
- promote voluntary compliance by communicating how we use external data with our own, to help encourage taxpayers to comply with their tax and super obligations.
A document describing this program is available at ato.gov.au/dmprotocols.
This program follows the Office of the Australian Information Commissioner’s Guidelines on data matching in Australian Government administration (2014) (the guidelines). The guidelines include standards for the use of data matching as an administrative tool in a way that:
- complies with the Australian Privacy Principles (APPs) and the Privacy Act 1988 (Privacy Act)
- is consistent with good privacy practice.
A full copy of the ATO’s privacy policy can be accessed at ato.gov.au/privacy.
Overview
The Services Australia specified benefits and entitlements data-matching program, introduced in 2024, is designed to address issues of non-compliance related to the Medicare levy and Medicare levy surcharge. This program, enacted by the Australian Taxation Office (ATO), aims to ensure that individuals accurately claim their exemptions while simultaneously promoting voluntary compliance. By acquiring Medicare Exemption Statement (MES) data from Services Australia, the ATO intends to enhance its understanding of trends and risks associated with non-compliance, thereby expediting the processing of tax returns and payments of refunds for eligible taxpayers. This initiative is intended to uphold the integrity of the tax system and ensure that all individuals and businesses meet their tax and superannuation obligations. The program adheres to the Office of the Australian Information Commissioner’s Guidelines on data matching and aligns with the Australian Privacy Principles and the Privacy Act 1988.
Scope and Application
The Commissioner of Taxation, pursuant to the Gazette notice, has announced the Services Australia specified benefits and entitlements data-matching program for the financial years 2024 through to 2026. This program involves the acquisition of Medicare Exemption Statement (MES) data from Services Australia, which includes details such as the full name, date of birth, residential address, entitlement status, and approved entitlement period of approximately 180,000 individuals annually. The primary aim of this data-matching program is to ensure accurate claims for exemption from the Medicare levy and Medicare levy surcharge, thereby facilitating better understanding of compliance risks and trends, developing educational strategies for future compliance, and expediting the processing of tax returns and refunds for genuinely entitled taxpayers. The program also includes verification activities to prevent improper claims and aims to promote voluntary compliance by clearly communicating the use of external data to aid in tax and super obligations. This initiative adheres to the Office of the Australian Information Commissioner’s Guidelines on data matching, ensuring compliance with the Australian Privacy Principles and the Privacy Act 1988.
Key Provisions
The main operative sections of the notice (C2024G00310) pertain to the acquisition and use of Medicare Exemption Statement (MES) data from Services Australia by the Australian Taxation Office (ATO) over the specified financial years (section 1). This data includes personal information such as full name, date of birth, residential address, and entitlement status, among other details. This acquisition is intended to ensure accurate claims of the Medicare levy exemption and the Medicare levy surcharge. The ATO estimates that approximately 180,000 individuals' records will be obtained each financial year, focusing on the period from the 2024 financial year to the 2026 financial year inclusively.
The Act imposes several obligations and requirements on the ATO and taxpayers. Firstly, the ATO must obtain and process the specified data to identify and address potential non-compliance in the claiming of Medicare exemptions. It also has the responsibility to work with taxpayers and intermediaries to better understand risks and trends related to non-compliance. The ATO is mandated to develop educational strategies to enhance taxpayers' understanding of compliance requirements and to facilitate the processing of tax returns and refunds for those genuinely entitled to exemptions (section 2). Moreover, the ATO must undertake verification activities if the data suggests that a taxpayer might not be entitled to claim the exemption.
In terms of potential offences, penalties, or consequences, the notice does not explicitly detail specific penalties for non-compliance. However, general provisions under the relevant taxation and privacy laws could apply. The ATO's use of data matching is subject to compliance with the Australian Privacy Principles (APPs) and the Privacy Act 1988 (section 3). Any misuse of personal information or failure to comply with privacy standards could result in civil or criminal penalties as prescribed under these acts. The ATO is obligated to safeguard the personal information obtained and ensure it is used only for the specified purposes, in line with good privacy practice as outlined in the Office of the Australian Information Commissioner’s Guidelines on data matching in Australian Government administration (2014).